Chapter 1666: Ye Yaodong's Father's Heartache

"Not? Why did it end so quickly? Didn't they say those of us who arrived late would act as reinforcements?" someone shouted in the public channel.

"Hehe, we had overwhelming numbers; they didn't dare clash head-on with us. We took them down in a few moves, you little bastards!"

"Damn, that was too useless. They didn't even wait for us to catch up. Damn it... I'm so angry, we were a step too late..."

"Hahaha, luckily we caught the tail end and arrived just as we were coming in behind the official fishing boats, hahaha..."

Some cursed in anger, some felt relieved, and some were overjoyed.

The captain of the Dongyu Hao was so regretful his intestines turned green, and he howled in the channel, "Damn it, I should have gone slower yesterday. No matter how fast we rushed, we were a step too late."

Ye Yaodong comforted them, "It doesn't matter; as long as we caught them, that's enough. If we encounter foreign fishing boats again in the future, everyone will work together."

"Sigh, who knows if there will be a future."

"Not necessarily. Those dogs are very arrogant; they come here to steal fish from time to time. We won't let them poach anymore."

"That's right!"

"Today, dozens of our fishing boats cooperated smoothly. Everyone stood united against outsiders. In the future, we can share a common hatred, so everyone need not worry about being unable to handle foreign fishing boats."

"Yes, that's right. If anyone spots them in the future, just make a sound in the channel. We will all mobilize just like today; we won't even care about the cargo as long as we drive them out."

"Laozi didn't even want the fish schools this morning; I hurriedly pulled up the nets. Luckily, I caught up."

"You didn't want the fish; our boss didn't even want the nets. He directly ordered us to abandon both the cargo and the nets. Otherwise, that ghost warship kept chasing us; it was so frustrating."

"Which boat are you on? Hahaha..."

"Our boss is Ye Yaodong, the one with nine boats..."

"Ah, Captain Ye... this entire trip was all thanks to Captain Ye..."

The channel was buzzing with chatter. Everyone was still excited after boarding the boats, and those who didn't make it urgently needed an outlet for their emotions.

On Ye Yaodong's side, the cockpit was not only noisy with the public channel; their own walkie-talkies were also excitedly chattering non-stop. He listened to the public channel while his cousin held the walkie-talkie; both were very busy.

"Dongzi, Boats 3 and 4 are asking if they abandoned their nets this morning and should now return together with the Dongyu Hao?"

"Mm, luckily we prepared a few extra fishing nets as backups last year. Tell them to bring one net back onto the boat, and then come over together with the fresh-fish transport ship."

"Okay, then have them transport the fish our boats caught last night back as well. It's convenient since everyone hasn't scattered yet, making cargo transport easy now."

"Sure, I might as well go back with them."

"Ah? Didn't you say you'd stay at sea for a few more days? You're going back already? Didn't we say you'd return on the next trip?"

"We caused such a big incident today. There probably won't be any trouble coming up next. The navy will definitely be active frequently in this sea area recently. There's also a Semi-finished product lighthouse on that reef island; they will definitely send people to handle it, so we don't need to worry about safety at sea."

"That's true."

"So I'll just go back directly. There's a pile of things waiting for me to handle on shore. It's only because I haven't come to see the sea for over a month that I was a bit worried, so I came out to take a look, thinking I'd stay for two or three days."

Now there's nothing to worry about. If today's incident hadn't happened, he would definitely have stayed at sea for two or three days.

"Then okay."

"Let them unload the cargo first. Boats 3 and 4 can receive cargo simultaneously; this is more efficient and saves everyone from having to queue to transfer onto Dongyu No. 1."

"Good, I'll go notify them immediately."

Everyone had only just returned to their respective boats a short while ago and were still preparing to set out again to continue fishing at sea. This was the best time to transfer cargo, as it wouldn't delay subsequent fishing.

They had just finished transporting a batch of cargo to Dongyu No. 1 yesterday. The remaining cargo wasn't actually much, but it was enough to fill a boat.

Three boats received cargo simultaneously, finishing in just a few hours. Ye Yaodong returned to Dongyu No. 1 and then led Boats 3 and 4 back together.

When he boarded Dongyu No. 1, the workers on the boat still looked depressed and disappointed, sighing as they worked.

"Don't be like this. Missing this one time, there might be a next time. So many foreign fishing boats come here to steal our fish; we will eventually encounter them. When that happens, we will drive them away fiercely."

"Hard to say. It's possible this might be the only time in our lives."

"Forget it. If we missed it, we missed it."

"Boss, when will we get the fresh-fish transport ship? Once we get the fresh-fish transport ship, won't this boat stop shuttling cargo back and forth? Will we just fish at sea all the time then?"

Ye Yaodong smiled and said, "At first, we were happy that our boat could shuttle between the shore and the sea, making it a bit easier than other fishing boats, allowing us to work three days and rest one. Now, we wish we could just float on the sea."

"Hehe... isn't this a pity? Returning just one or two hours later would have been fine, or driving a bit slower would have worked. Alas, it's too late to talk about that now."

"Right, it's too late to talk about anything. Cheer up; at least we didn't let them succeed."

"It's fine. Maybe there will be another chance in the future; these people won't change their thieving hearts."

"Mm... Boss is still lucky. He hasn't been to the sea for a month, and the moment he came out, he caught up with it and even saw through their trick."

Ye Yaodong also felt he was lucky. He had always known he was lucky. If he hadn't discovered it today, the lighthouse here might have started operating before anyone knew.

And he might have only come out to stay for two or three days today. If he went back, he might have to wait until next year to set sail again.

"It is destiny that these demons and monsters cannot occupy our territory; no matter how many come, they won't succeed. Alright, everyone, cheer up. We are returning. At least we can brag about it when we tell others. It was our own people who contributed, so we can hold our heads high and share in the glory."

Everyone agreed, but although they agreed, they only agreed to sound good.

Someone else's honor is not as proud-making as the honor gained from participating personally.

Ye Yaodong waited until he finished inspecting the freezer room, even stuffing the gaps in the hatch doors with old cotton cloth, before he confidently returned to the cockpit.

The captain and the chief officer were still regretfully muttering, but he didn't speak again; he just took the telescope and continued gazing into the distance.

Several official warships were still at the reef island, and the other side's patrol boat was still there as well. It was already dark; he didn't know if they could negotiate a deal tonight.

Anyway, they definitely wouldn't let the people go back so easily. Territorial disputes between countries involve a lot of wrangling.

When he waited to return to the cabin to rest, he couldn't help but replay the events of the day from morning to night in his mind, and the more he thought about it, the more excited he became.

Suddenly, he slapped the bed board, "Alas, Old Man missed it again! This time his thigh should be slapped until it breaks!"

Thinking of his father finding out, his face turning iron-green, he couldn't help but shake his head in regret.

His father had been longing to get on the newspaper, to become famous, to be officially commended once, and he missed it again.

Just a few days ago, he had mentioned it to his father in the cafeteria, asking his father to go to sea, but his father had decisively refused, giving no room for negotiation, and even threatened to retire directly and go home to enjoy old age.

This time, his intestines should turn green with regret.

A few years ago, when a small unmanned underwater vehicle was fished up, the city specifically commended them, and they even appeared in the newspaper. His father was already very regretful then; everyone in the whole place had a share, but his father was on his eldest brother and second brother's boat helping out, missing the opportunity.

It would have just barely missed the mark after ten days or half a month.

This trip was the same; it was only mentioned a few days ago. General Ye was destined not to have that fate.

Detention, yes; commendation, no...

Went in twice, missed it twice...

The fishing boat sailed for about two and a half days before finally docking.

Ye's father received the notice and rushed over immediately, speaking in a frantic manner: "Why did you return two days later than the original plan? You almost scared me to death. I thought something had happened. I couldn't sleep the entire night yesterday."

"We are fine. No, wait, we are not. Something huge happened. We did a glorious, great deed!"

"Haha, it's a matter of the greatest importance..."

"What did you do? What could be more important than bringing back cargo? If you were a day late, I could say it was normal. But two days late, and I was panicking." Ye's father asked with a furrowed brow.

The workers spoke all at once to tell him about the great deed they had done. Ye's father's pupils shrank as he listened, his face filled with disbelief, his expression stunned, his mouth open wide enough to swallow an egg.

Ye Yaodong had just come down from the wheelhouse when he saw his father slap his thigh hard.

"Oh my, my ancestor! This is a deed that brings glory to the ancestors!"

Ye Yaodong smiled and said, "Yes, we must write this into the family genealogy when we return."

Ye's father looked full of regret and clutched his chest again. "Oh my, my heart is throbbing with pain. Why didn't I go? My ancestor, it's so infuriating..."

"A while back, I said let you go to sea, but you wouldn't. Now look, you've missed the chance to brag about this for a lifetime..."

Ye's father felt even more heartbroken. "Stop talking, you're making me so angry. Why didn't you insist? Your mouth is usually so good at arguing and talking; why didn't you strongly demand it of me then?"

"I did say it. Didn't you threaten to retire and stop giving me work? If General Ye doesn't even want to be General Ye anymore, how could I force you to do something you didn't want to do?"

"The whole family is usually so good at talking, so good at urging me to work for you. This time, you didn't even say two more words. Alas, my heart hurts so much..."

Ye's father was heartbroken, far more so than last time. He had missed another chance; there might never be another opportunity in his life.

His heart ached so much that tears of old age were about to fall.

Seeing his father's distress, Ye Yaodong quickly comforted him. "It's fine. There will be chances in the future. You are still young. Otherwise, work for me for a few more years; who knows, you might catch an opportunity."

"I am still young? I am still young? You young big-headed ghost!" Ye's father retorted, his voice rising with each sentence.

"Didn't you just turn sixty? Aren't you regretful? Then go wait on the sea again. Many foreign fishing boats are stealing our fish on the high seas."

A worker also comforted him, saying, "We didn't make it either. We were just one hour short. It was even more painful; it was right before our eyes."

"It's not that easy to encounter such a thing."